One

Our girl is one!! She turned one on July 18 and her party was so great. I wanted it to be so perfect, that I spent hours and hours planning every detail and spending way too much money. It was all so worth it. I've been excited about this day for some time. She loves music and the Bob Marley version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow is one of her favorites. We had fun with this theme with a special cake by Adrienne and Co, a yellow brick road on our sidewalk complete with music playing, lots of rainbow balloons and decorations, foods in rainbow colors (fruit, sandwiches, chip bags, juice boxes, rice krispie treats, gumballs, candy, etc). We had the Wizard of Oz movie playing and after everyone ate, we played a video of photos of Ella's first year of life.

Her 9-month clothes are about too little and its time to move up to the 12 month clothes. We have just moved up to size 3 diapers. A couple weeks ago, we noticed a top tooth coming in and just last week, we see the one next to it is also appearing.

At the beginning of July, she had her first beach trip to Florida and didn't seem to excited about the sand, but sure does love the water. I was nervous every time she was out. I keep the high SPF lotion on her, but I still was worried about her getting burned. All was good though. She also did so great on the long car rides. She's a trooper. Luckily she had her 7-year old cousin Matty to entertain her on the ride down. She enjoyed him playing with her and even offered him kisses. She's usually stingy with the kisses, they are usually just reserved for her mom and sometimes daddy.

Ella continues to say "Mom" and "Dada", but also says no, bye, and "PopPop". She loves clapping, giving 5, waving, and blowing kisses. And of course, smiling, singing, and dancing are expected around her.

Her hair is getting thicker and she is crawling around like crazy! She pulls herself up on anything she can, but gets nervous to plop down and crawl again.

She's eating more, but still isn't a huge fan of the fruits. She loves her veggies and any kind of meat, cheese, and bread. The doctor gave us the green light to go to whole milk and wants us to taper off of the bottles. We just got down to 4 about a month ago, and I think it might take us some time. But this kids surprises me, so we'll see. I feel like we're having to constantly adjust to her growing. Our schedule is ever changing and she keeps us learning!

Night time is a fun routine of playtime, bathtime, then the bottle right before she crawls up to our shoulder and falls asleep. That cuddle time is the most precious part of my day and I love it. Usually it doesn't take long for her to conk out and we can lay her down in her crib, but sometimes I just want to hold her a bit longer and savor that feeling.

What a fast and amazing year it has been getting to fall in love with this baby girl. I would do anything for her and she is our world.

One Cute Baby

Ella is now about 9.5 months. And for some crazy reason, she just keeps getting cuter. I didn't think it was possible. I grow more and more in love with her and couldn't be more blessed. Looking at her I know there is a God who loves me so much, he gave me such an amazing gift. 

She's not moving around a lot. She's a pro at getting around just by rolling, and she loves sliding backwards, but she is doing an army crawl. I wouldn't think it will be much longer when she's up on her knees and all throughout the house.

She's catching on a little better to food. She is a very independent girl and prefers to feed herself. I usually just give her some peas or blueberries or whatever soft fruit or veggies is around the house. Not a lot is eaten, but I hope she's getting the hang of big people food. She now can take a bottle herself and is such a big girl holding her bottle. In the mornings and night, I still like to hold her though. Our special time together.

The weather is getting warmer and she's fitting into her 9-month clothes. She looks so adorable in them. It's so nice not to worry about bundling her up when taking her out in the cold.

We've enjoyed going on walks and being out and about with her. In early April, we graduated her to the convertible car seat. It's so nice not having to deal with the awkwardly heavy car seat carrier. Plus I love getting to carry her around. She really is becoming a big girl.

About a week before the 9-month birthday, we discovered that she has a tooth coming in on the bottom. When we went to the doctor, she pointed out that another one is growing right next to it! So exciting! I just hope she doesn't have a lot of pain with them.

One little problem that has occurred is separation anxiety. She has it mostly for her mommy, but it also happens at day care with her teacher. She just looks so sad if I leave the room that it breaks my heart, but I want her to be a bit more self-sufficient, so I try to fight picking her up all the time.

We can't wait for her first birthday party. We've already started on the planning. So happy to celebrate the birth of this amazing child that has rocked our world!

She Keeps Growing!

Yikes, it's been awhile since I've written! Ella is changing so much, it's the coolest thing ever to watch her grow up. Everything she does is so cute. I want to cherish every smile and giggle. Right after she turned 7 months old, we had photos taken. She could almost sit up. And it was for about 15 seconds at most. Well, 2 weeks later, she could sit up for 30 minutes straight! If she tries to reach for a toy or something, she'll wobble. But for the most part, she's nailing the sitting up step!

One newer thing that I love is that she will reach for people. We've tested it at daycare when I pick her up and it just makes my day when she reaches those arms out to me. There was even a day when I wasn't even encouraging her. She knows how to melt my heart!

She's still wearing 6-month clothes and I'm guessing, should be for about another month or so. Most of her clothes in that size is for winter, so as the weather starts to warm up, she might not have a lot of options. My mom bought her several fun 9-month outfits for summer that I can't wait to see her in!

She still doesn't seem too interested in food. Twice a day though, we still try it. I want her to get use to it and I'm hopeful that she'll catch on soon. I know she's wanting more in her bottles, but I really don't want to increase them. We should be going down because of her food intake. I plan to keep trying and if we're still having issues at 9-months, we'll discuss with the doctor. She does seem to like her sippy cup and once I let her have water out of my glass, so now every time she sees us with a glass she grabs for it. I think it's so cute how she holds the glass and tilts her head back for a drink.

No teeth have popped out yet, but maybe we'll see something soon.

Now we're waiting for her to crawl. It could be soon and I know we need to work on getting our house babyproofed!

We love this girl so much and couldn't be more proud of her!

2015!

Our little Peanut continues to grow and warm our hearts. She's so much fun and getting to celebrate Christmas this year was so special for us. We decided to keep a low budget for her. We each spent $50 on her and keep it a surprise from each other, so we could see what we each got for her. Her daddy got her a rocking horse and a stuffed Dalmatian. I got her a push walker, puzzle playmat, and the Barenaked Ladies Snacktime cd. It's their kids cd and her mommy's favorite band. She loves music and I thought it would be nice to have on hand in the car when she's with me.

Her other big gifts were an exersaucer from Mike's parents and a bumbo seat from mine. Here's a picture of all the other gifts she got...boy, this girl is spoiled!

We were traveling around a lot for the holidays, but she was a trooper and loved getting all dolled up.

She got a lot of 6-month clothes for Christmas and they're close to fitting. She'll be 6 months in a couple weeks, so she right on target. She loves to smile and is laughing even more. She's also quite an independent little lady. She sometimes gets fussy when being held too long because she wants down to play. Laying down surrounded by toys is her favorite place to be.

She is rolling over a lot more and we've been encouraging her to start crawling, but she just gets impatient and gives up. I'm sure it's a little early, but we can't wait to see her grow. She loves to be on her feet and we wonder if she'll be walking before she crawls!

We started giving her rice cereal at the 5 month mark. She was going through quite a growth spell and couldn't get enough to eat. She seems rather indifferent to it, but we usually try a few bits a couple times a day. I was so excited a couple nights ago when she actually opened her mouth when the spoon came near. I was worried I was pushing her too much, but I'm glad she's starting to understand it.

She's been reaching for things now. When we're talking to her, she'll reach for her face and I know she loves her daddy's beard. She's growing faster than my emotions can prepare for. I'm just so proud of how smart and beautiful she is. I'm excited to see what 2015 will be like for her!